Penn Energy Renewables and Canadian Solar Expand EPC Agreement for the Construction of an Additional 10 MW Solar Power Project In Ontario

GUELPH and TORONTO, Ontario, Oct. 16, 2012 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: CSIQ) (the "Company", or "Canadian Solar"), one of the world's largest solar power companies, today announced that its subsidiary, Canadian Solar Solutions Inc., has expanded its relationship with Penn Energy Renewables Ltd. ("Penn Energy") with an additional 10MW (AC) turnkey engineering, procurement and construction ("EPC") contract and operations and maintenance ("OM") agreement for the construction and operation of a solar power project in Ontario by Canadian Solar for Penn Energy. This latest agreement brings the total EPC and OM agreement between the two companies to 28.7MW (AC). Construction of the newest solar power plant will begin in the fourth quarter of 2012, with the facility expected to be fully operational by the third quarter of 2013. Construction on the previously announced solar power projects, representing 18.7MW (AC), is underway and expected to be fully operational by the summer of 2013.

"Our mission is to provide homes, businesses and schools with solar power that connects directly to existing electrical distribution lines. It is critical to our success that we have a strong EPC partner, which we have found with Canadian Solar," said Sean McCloskey, Penn Energy Renewables Ltd.

"Penn Energy has a very forward looking vision for solar power and this utility-scale solar installation is notably the third project of our successful partnership," said Dr. Shawn Qu, chairman and chief executive officer of Canadian Solar. "These projects will significantly contribute to the growth of solar powered energy and job creation in the Ontario market, and extend our position as a leading provider of solar energy solutions in Canada."

The latest utility-scale solar power project will power approximately 1,462 homes and is expected to prevent approximately 234,440 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions over the 20-year period. In addition, the installation will include approximately 46,000 Canadian Solar CS6P high-performance modules, which have been formally tested and awarded international certifications validating the quality of the Company's products. The solar power plant is expected to create more than 100 new jobs during the development and construction phases of the project.

About Canadian Solar Inc.

Canadian Solar Inc. is one of the world's largest solar companies. As a leading vertically integrated provider of ingots, wafers, solar cells, solar modules and other solar applications, Canadian Solar designs, manufactures and delivers solar products and solar system solutions for on-grid and off-grid use to customers worldwide. With operations in North America, Europe, Australia, Africa and Asia, Canadian Solar provides premium quality, cost-effective and environmentally-friendly solar solutions to support global, sustainable development. For more information, visit www.canadiansolar.com.

About Penn Energy Renewables Ltd.

Penn Energy Renewables Ltd. is the Canadian member of the Penn Group of Companies which is headquartered just outside Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Penn actively develops, acquires and invests in utility-scale solar farms. The firm is a long-term investor and has real estate, mineral and energy holdings in Texas, Nevada, New York, Vermont, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Delaware, Pennsylvania and Ontario. Penn is applying the companies' resources, experience and track record of success to deliver first-class utility-scale solar farms that are clean, quiet and produce infinitely renewable solar energy. In Ontario, Penn Energy Renewables Ltd. has seven executed Feed-in-Tariff (FIT) contracts with the Ontario Power Authority (OPA) for projects with power generation capacity in excess of 60 megawatts AC. Penn strives to enhance its relationships with utilities and project developers and welcomes new opportunities to continue growing its portfolio of solar development projects and operating solar farms in markets worldwide. For more information, visit www.pennenergyrenewables.com.

Safe Harbor/Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements in this press release are forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially. These statements are made under the "Safe Harbor" provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by such terms as "believes," "expects," "anticipates," "intends," "estimates," the negative of these terms, or other comparable terminology. Factors that could cause actual results to differ include the risks regarding general business and economic conditions and the state of the solar industry; governmental support for the deployment of solar power; future available supplies of high-purity silicon; demand for end-use products by consumers and inventory levels of such products in the supply chain; changes in demand from significant customers; changes in demand in our project markets, including Canada; changes in customer order patterns; capacity utilization; level of competition; pricing pressure and declines in average selling prices; delays in new product introduction; continued success in technological innovations and delivery of products with the features customers demand; utility-scale project approval process; delays in utility-scale project construction; shortage in supply of materials or capacity requirements; availability of financing; exchange rate fluctuations; litigation and other risks as described in the Company's SEC filings, including its annual report on Form 20-F filed on April 27, 2012. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in the forward looking statements are reasonable, it cannot guarantee future results, level of activity, performance, or achievements. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. All information provided in this press release is as of today's date, unless otherwise stated, and Canadian Solar undertakes no duty to update such information, except as required under applicable law.